Unchartered Prince
An Imperial Governance Charter - or Just charter for short, is an Imperial contract that guarantees ownership and colonization rights of it's holder to a system. These are used to restrict and control the amount of territory that any house may legally control. Holding a charter requires that every 5 years a sum of money is paid to the Empire, and it guarantees protection and legal rights to the holder, forbidding forceful annexation of systems.
A charter is not a deed of land itself, but the legally guaranteed right to own land, if a family holding a charter wishes to move their house from one system to another - the charter would be just a valid on the new system as it was on the old.
Charters a very expensive and laborious to acquire - Every 10 years the Empire releases a batch of charters to Kowloon to auction these to the nobility of the frontier, there a fierce competition of bidding, bribes, and favors is held to lay hands on one of these charters. The order of whom the charters are offered to is regulated - such that unlanded families are offered the first round to purchase, if they are unable to afford the price single system families are invited to bid, if they are unable to than multi-system families are then permitted to bid - until finally Great houses are granted permission to purchase the charter. This has given rise to vassal minor houses being the de-facto method to acquire more territory - a low noble will assemble a station or colonize a planet as an unchartered Prince, they will then petition their great house to sponsor them in purchasing a charter, and agree on terms of taxation of other obligations. Then finally with the letter of credit in hand they will attempt to purchase the charter at Kowloon.
A charter is not a deed of land itself, but the legally guaranteed right to own land, if a family holding a charter wishes to move their house from one system to another - the charter would be just a valid on the new system as it was on the old.
Charters a very expensive and laborious to acquire - Every 10 years the Empire releases a batch of charters to Kowloon to auction these to the nobility of the frontier, there a fierce competition of bidding, bribes, and favors is held to lay hands on one of these charters. The order of whom the charters are offered to is regulated - such that unlanded families are offered the first round to purchase, if they are unable to afford the price single system families are invited to bid, if they are unable to than multi-system families are then permitted to bid - until finally Great houses are granted permission to purchase the charter. This has given rise to vassal minor houses being the de-facto method to acquire more territory - a low noble will assemble a station or colonize a planet as an unchartered Prince, they will then petition their great house to sponsor them in purchasing a charter, and agree on terms of taxation of other obligations. Then finally with the letter of credit in hand they will attempt to purchase the charter at Kowloon.
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